Valve Reverses MW2 Bans, Offers Free L4D2

Valve erroneously swung the Banhammer at over 12000 Modern Warfare 2 players over the weekend after a software glitch identified them as hackers- and after much howling and rending of garments, Valve has apologised for their mistake. Not only have these player accounts now been reactivated, but they've also each received two copies of Left 4 Dead 2 for the inconvenience. Nothing says "We're sorry" like hordes of ravening zombies.

Once again, another class act from Valve. You can't even hate them when they screw up! [GI]

Nintendo Trademark CrossPass... Are Subscriptions on the Way?

Our regulars may remember that Shigeru Miyamoto was toying with the idea of introducing paid Nintendo subscriptions back in May... and some recent trademarks may indicate that this may already be in the pipeline. CrossPass, CrossPass Mode and CrossPass Network have been trademarked in Japan, which sounds suspiciously like a first foray into the mucky and lucrative world of online subs- or at least some sort of online marketplace.

Don't panic just yet. There are several other things that CrossPass could be. Chief amongst the other contenders is that CrossPass might be a rebranding of the 3DS' Tag Mode, which allows the handheld to passively connect to other units even when deactivated (allowing for merging of game and character data when you unknowingly walk past a fellow player). However, the CrossPass Network trademark seems to suggest that this refers to something on a much larger scale. Wii/3DS cross-functionality, perhaps?

We'd like to hear your thoughts on this one. Would you pay for Nintendo Online subcriptions? Want to take a swing at what CrossPass might refer to? Drop us a line in the comments!

Dungeon Siege III Trailered; Dragon Age 2 Early Footage

We love dungeons, dragons, and darkspawn here at Dealspwn- and today brings us a couple of nifty videos for Dragon Age 2 and Dungeon Siege III. It's time for some dark fantasy

Let's start with Dungeon Siege III. Whilst the franchise went completely off the rails by letting Uwe Boll get his greasy boxing-gloved mitts all over the film rights, Obsidian's new cinematic trailer more than makes up for it. It's a little on the short side, mind.

Secondly, Game Informer has acquired some impressive early footage of Bioware's Dragon Age 2 in action. I'm afraid I can't include the video in the roundup for copyright reasons, but it's well worth clicking out and having a gander. As well as some gothic concept art, it also shows off some improved graphics and stealth mechanics. Note that this is an early build- so we can expect many more tweaks, improvements and reveals down the line.

Starcraft II Is Out!

Just in case you don't already know (and haven't taken the day off work after queuing for a midnight launch), the long-awaited Starcraft II has finally been released. The RTS market has been waiting a long time for this one.

Naturally, we'll keep you up to date on the cheapest way of getting your hands on Starcraft II. If you didn't take advantage of our (now defunct) £27.99 preorder deal, that is!